Chit Chat in Nightfur's lair

Bandit and Derean talk in the cells of Nightfur. Will these two pull together and encourage one another to survive? Or will Nightfur find them the next morning both dead with their claws at each others throats... Players are Derean, Startlight, both otters, and the fatty fox Bandit, the not fatty fox Nightfur , and Braxton the badger dibbuns first ever appearance.

It is quiet today in the dungeons of Nightfur's slave cells. In the darkness of the cell two glowing green eyes calmly watch the other prisoners. Bandit runs a paw over his growling stomach. At the very least imprisonment seems to be good for his waist line, the young and fat fox has dropped a few pounds.

Sitting in one corner of the cell is a brown furred otter wearing a now scuffed up black leather vest and a regular pair of black pants. His blank stare mirrors insanity, though unless somebeast were to inquire, the reason would be unknown for his condition.

The fox's vision cross the otter next to him. He would ask what is wrong but, that would be a stupid question. As Bandit looks about the room he stares at each beasts and wonders how each one should feel, what they must be thinking, and what they would taste like grilled...The fox blinks at his own though. NO! No thinking like that! The fox has to quiet his growling stomach once again.

Derean's gaze in comparison remains fixed on one spot on the ground. There is an almost glazed expression in his eyes, but he simply remains silent for the present.

The fox clutches almost painfully at his belly. How long has it been since he has eaten? It feels like days now...Bandit looks over at the otter to his right. He must admit the beast does look meaty. Surely the beast wont miss a paw, or tail, or even...NO! The fox pulls at his ears, declairing very loudly, "Snap out of it bandit!"

Derean starts, startled at the sudden outburst. He doesn't quite speak yet, but he seems to be taking stock of his surroundings now.

Bandit is starting to get a half crazed look in his eyes as well. The thought of entrapment has never settled well on the fox, or starvation. He shimmies up to the otter next to him, elbowing him in the side, "Hey mate, you wouldn't happen to have any food on ya, would you? I...I think i'm wasting away here from lack of food."

Derean looks over at the fox blankly. His face is not so much devoid of understanding as it is devoid of all hope and emotion. "I..don't have vittles fox...doesn't matter though..." He sighs. "We'll die here anyway..."

The green eyes grow larger in the dark. "Oh...well then..." Bandit realizes that now would be the time for comforting words, encouraging the otter to hang on, to be strong. To not lose help. Instead the fox just replies, "Thats...not good."

Derean shakes his head. "It's better than bein' here I s'pose..." He says softly to himself, sounding like that seems to be his only option of ever leaving this place.

The fox cross his arms, nodding silently in the dark. "Sounds like you don't think we are going to survive this." The otters depression is making him depressed. Combined with the stress he already has, and his hunger it is not making Bandit into a happy fox. Something must be done about this, "So...if you are so set on dying here, do you mind if I eat you when you go?"

Derean chuckles, shrugging. "I'll be dead, so I don't think I would care. Besides, I don't have anythin' out there fer me. I'm an assassin, so the world is better off without my help anyhow."

The fox cackles coldly, "I'll hold you to that then. But you're not going to die." The fox leans back over to his own corner of the room. He reaches under his vest which is laying in the corner of the room and produces a small section of a staff. it has been broken on both ends and looks sharp enough to ack as a make shift 'shank' it is infact the remains of Oz's staff. "Consider this a present." The fox hands the broken staff to the otter, "One I hope you give the guards when the time comes, if you catch my meaning."

Derean raises an eyebrow, looking at Bandit curiously. "Why...why are you helpin' me..? If I get out, I might get hired t' kill you. Why help me?"

Starlight eyes slowly open as she yawns

The following slap is heard down the hallways. Thankfully Bandit used his free paw and not the stick to smack the otter in the face, "Now you listen to me otter." The fox begins, green eyes ablaze with anger, stress and running thin on patience. He grabs the otter by his vest and pulls him close, almost eye to eye. "I don't bleedin care if you are an assassin, a murder, or a saint. Right now its only a handful of slaves against an army of slavers. We can't afford your self loathing and self pity, so either keep it to yourself and focus on surviving or I will do us all a favor and eat you here and now!" The fox pulls him closer, if possible, "You WILL survive or so help me I will kill you."

Starlight blinks, she woke up at a bad time and so now she hides in a dark corner of the room

Derean is a bit too shocked by the outburst to really react much aside from instinctively balling up a fist and bringing it around to slam into the side of Bandit's face, hopefully releasing him from the fox's hold on him.

POW! Right to the kisser. The fox falls over onto his back. His paws twitch at the air a little and his tounge hangs out the side of his mouth. Bandit replies by making a low pitched whimper.

Derean himself scrambles back away from the fox, still holding onto the broken staff, but something in the fox's words stuck with him. Sure, he may be a slave yet again, but the only reason he got out the last time was because he refused to just give up and die a slave. Maybe...maybe he could get out after all...

"Owwwwwwwww...." the fox whimpers. He slowly pulls himself up, rubbing the side of his jaw, "T-thanks...I needed that..."

Derean pants, looking straight at Bandit. "N-No...I needed you here fox..you must fergive me. I had forgotten what's important, but the thought of being a slave /again/..it's a bit more than I can handle.."

Nightfur has arrived in just enough time to see...a fight? He smirks but it's not why he came, he opens the door just enough to shove someone inside and locks it,"Ya gonna stay in here a while and THINK on better obeying me runt"

Braxton rolls into the cell and frowns up at the bars, he doesn't try and fight back he just looks at the floor and sits there.

The fat fox is about to reply with a joke when his head snaps around to the sound of foot paws. The broken piece of staff in Derean's paws is snatched away by Bandit. It simply dissapears behind him. "Oh! Nightfur! top of the morning to ye!" he yelps nervously, hoping the darkness in teh cell concealed the weapon from site, "Been busy i see?"

Nightfur glare threw the bars and snorts, he has no time to argue with slaves and storms off, yes he has had a bad afternoon.

Braxton sniffs, hey he is a dibbun still even if he has not ever played or had fun most of his life, he runs over to a wall and lays down sobbing.

Derean reacts quickly, getting up and rushing over to the crying badger dibbun. He kneels by Braxton, holding out a comforting paw. "Hullo there..wot's yer name?" He ventures, feeling quite bad for the badger. Of course, his having been a slave dibbun himself definitely contributes to feeling a sort of connection with the badger dibbun, if indeed Braxton was a slave, which Derean assumed he was.

Once the black furred tyrant leaves the room Bandit scowls, He moves the end of his tail to the side and picks up the make shift weapon he has. The fleshy fox moves over to the corner where his vest is and stuffs the weapon under it, "Looks like Nightfur has been busy."

Braxton looks up at the otter and blinks, he frowns again as tears flow.."Braxton..N..Nightfur means, always means ta me. Never lets me play or..or anything"

Derean tilts his head, picking up the badger gently. "Oh how I know wot yore goin' through Braxton..." He mutters mostly to himself.

Braxton tenses up as he is picked up and shivers, one he learns he is not going to get hurt he relaxes slightly.

Bandit raises an eyebrow at Derean. Just a few moments ago the otter was about to keel over from despair. A though arises in the fox's mind. He strolls over and pats the otter on the shoulder, "I don't think I could get you a better reason for not just rolling over and dying. If you die here, who is going to get this dibbun to safety? Who is going to take care of the other slaves?"

Derean looks back at Bandit, almost surprised. "Well..there's DoraRose. She's a mother more than I am a father. It's just..." He looks back down at Braxton. "I can't deal with seeing enslaved dibbuns...it reminds me o' meself.."

Braxton looks over at the fox, why is a fox in here? He has nit seen hin before so he watches him closely when he comes near the otter and him.He frowns at the word slave as it seems he knows it well

The fox cringes at the mention of Dora, and also Derean's statement. He doesn't expect the otter to instantly become well or work through his stress in a single night. But he needs Derean to be focused on escaping, not dying. "Dora has a concussion. I'll be surprised if she can stand on her own two feet let alone escape. The rest of these beasts are simple peasent folk. This is the most violence they have ever expected in their lives. As it stands, Zork, myself and you are very well going to be left with the majority of the fighting." The fox adds, a bit of a twinge in his gut for pulling this card, the otter may hate him for it but if it keeps him alive so be it, "I'm a bandit. I'm only looking out for number one, my own hide. Once we get free of this place yer all on your own. So if you want to get this dibbun to safety, you are going to bring him, not me."

Derean looks as though he hadn't considered this before, and he looks down at Braxton. "I..can't leave him here...but wot am I goin' t' do with him?" He asks, having a visible bit of trouble trying to think through this.

Braxton looks between them and frowns, he just stays quiet he is unsure where to go either.

Bandit gives a wide foxy shrug as he walks back to his corner of the room. "Take him to Redwall...or Ferrevale. Just somewhere safe." Good, now the otter is inspired to keep himself alive, now lets hammer it home and make sure he stays that way. Bandit grins evilly in the darkness as she slumps against the wall, crossing his arms, "Remember though, if you die, I still have dibs on eating you." he chuckles, "Maybe the badger will make a good desert."

Braxton whimpers at the fox, that was bad to say...very bad to say.

Derean hugs the dibbun closer to himself. "Right, well evidently I can't die if this here dibbun needs help, since you won't help him." He adds the last part with a bit of a bite, more characteristics of his old personality coming back to the surface.

The fox's eyes flash green in the low light. His toothy grin can also be seen in the darkness for a brief moment. Inwardly Bandit hates himself for this but some of his old personality is coming into the fore again as well. A fat and lazy gluttonous fox is going to be no help to his friends. If he wants to survive, and help them do so, he is going to have to become a pirate once again, "You be best to remember that otter, you are no good to us dead. So suck it up." he says, then to the dibbun, "Don't worry little badger. You'll be alright...Derean is here to protect you."

Braxton blinks and frowns a little, "No won;'t..Nightfur mean, he killed mama and daddy and.." He frowns"He said he killed my sister too"

Derean looks down at the badger, inquiring, "Who was yer ma an' pa an' sister? Wot were their names?" It seems there were many beasts who believed their loved ones dead when they really weren't, so it was worth a try.

Bandit grits his teeth at the badgers statement. Nightfur is going to be brought to justice...he will make sure of it. He is relieved to see that his work here with Derean is done. One can only hammer a nail so far before they damage the wood. "The fox examines himself, my how far he has let himself go. No wonder the beasts after him have had such a hard time finding him. Bandit wouldn't have recognized himself if he met him a year ago. Something needs to be done about this is and...wait..."Zinnia?" The fox begins to chuckle, "She is your sister?"

Braxton nods, he frowns and curls into a ball when he is on the ground.."Nightfur's had..had me since mama and daddy died"

The fox laughs, "Your sister is alive Brax. She is at Redwall. I have seen her myself the last time I visited the place." Bandit sits down. He stretches out across the stone floor and takes a deep breath before starting a push up.

Derean crouches near Braxton, smiling. "Zork adopted her, so I think he'll be yer pa." He points to the sleeping badger in reference.

Braxton looks over at the sleeping Zork, and back to them, "Zinnia live????????"

The fox manages three pushes ups then collapses onto the floor. He chuckles , "Yep. Zinnia live."

Derean chuckles, nodding still. "Aye Braxton. She's livin' at Redwall!"

Braxton smiles, this seems like the best news ever in his 3 seasons of life, but still a frown as mom and dad are still dead, then he saw them die so he knows.

Derean sighs, sitting back. As much as he wouldn't want to admit it, he had already developed a small connection just from knowing that he could relate to Braxton in terms of being a dibbun slave. "Well I think Zork will be able to protect you better than I will anyways.." He says with some regret.

Laying on the floor Bandit rolls his eyes. He lets the otters statement slide for now. The fox grunts in effort to pick up his bulk again and continue with his push ups, There is a lot of work to be done. He just hopes they have enough time to do it...